A female University of Cincinnati student who was suspended over alleged sexual misconduct involving a male student has sued the university, saying she was disciplined for “engaging in the same sexual freedoms that men on the campus enjoy.”

The lawsuit, filed this week in federal court in Cincinnati, makes similar allegations to other cases in recent years that have named UC as well as Miami University.

A consistent theme is that the process universities use to investigate sexual assaults is flawed and prevents accused students from being able to defend themselves. All those previous local cases were filed by men.

The lawsuit filed this week is unusual because it was brought by a woman identified only as “Jane Roe.” She says she was treated unfairly during an investigation into her alleged sexual misconduct.

According to the lawsuit, the treatment and discipline imposed on the woman amounted to “slut-shaming.” It defines the term as “the act of criticizing a woman for her real or presumed sexual activity.”

"You have a woman who was the sexual aggressor, and the school doesn't really know how to deal with that situation," her attorney, Josh Engel, said in an interview.

The lawsuit also alleges the male student made the accusations in retaliation for her accusing one of his friends of sexual assault. That friend was interviewed as part of the investigation into the male student’s accusations, according to the lawsuit.

The male student “and his friends were upset that Jane Roe had made these allegations and were seeking revenge,” the lawsuit says.

UC spokesman Greg Vehr said because of federal confidentiality requirements, he could not address the specifics of any individual case.

"The University of Cincinnati focuses on the well-being of our entire community and makes every effort to provide an equitable process that respects everyone’s rights and accommodates their needs," Vehr said in a statement. "Our goal, as an educational institution, is what’s best for all of our students in terms of safety, equity, and support.

The incident at the center of the lawsuit happened in the fall of 2017.

The male and female student were both drinking heavily, according to the lawsuit. They left a party together and walked to his home.

According to the lawsuit, two of his roommates told the investigator they tried unsuccessfully to get her to leave.

The male and female students' accounts of what happened in his bedroom differ, but according to the lawsuit the male student told a university Title IX investigator that the female student started “kissing him and touching him.” He also said she asked him to have sexual intercourse and he said, no. He said he penetrated her digitally.

The female student, however, said “he started kissing her” and removed her shirt. She said she asked “if there was anything else” he wanted to do. According to her, he said he wanted to go to sleep, and they did.

The male student reported his allegations to the university’s Title IX office, saying he was too intoxicated to consent to sexual activity, the lawsuit says.

A university hearing found that the female student was “responsible.” After a failed appeal, the lawsuit says she was notified by letter in February that she would be suspended. She will be eligible to re-enroll after the male student graduates or is no longer a student.

Also among the lawsuit's allegations is that after UC learned the male student engaged in sexual activity with the female student while she was intoxicated, UC did not encourage her to file a complaint or otherwise investigate.

UC, the lawsuit says, “was facing pressure to prosecute females accused of sexual assault because it has been named a defendant in multiple lawsuits brought by men who alleged that UC discriminates against men.”